RECORD $85,000 GRANTED BY COMMUNITY FOUNDATION’S WOMEN’S FUNDFOR GIRLS’ HEALTH AND WOMEN’S ECONOMIC | Health

Monterey, CA—The Women’s Fund of Monterey County, a field of interest fund at the Community Foundation for Monterey County, announced a record $85,000 was awarded for five grants in 2010. This funding represents the largest amount ever granted by the Women’s Fund and a major step toward achieving the sustained support envisioned for women and girls in Monterey County.

“Women’s economic empowerment and girls’ health were the top granting priorities for the Women’s Fund this year,” stated Julie Drezner, Vice President of Community Engagement.  “Research shows that when women and girls learn, grow and prosper, the entire community thrives,” she continued. 

With the support of Women’s Fund donors, the David and Lucile Packard Foundation and the Comerica Charitable Foundation, the Community Foundation awarded a one-year $75,000 grant to Unity Care Group, Inc., which serves more than 2,500 youth and their families in an eight county region.  Unity Care’s office in Salinas assists over 100 youth ages 14-21 who are facing barriers to success in a school or work setting with academic/career counseling, employment readiness training and support service referrals.  The Women’s Fund grant to Unity Care will support the implementation of the Girls’ Health in Girls’ Hands (GHGH) project.

GHGH was initiated by the Women’s Fund in 2008 as a girl-led action research project to identify the health information, support and service needs of pre-teen and teen girls in Monterey County.  Now that the research has been completed, the next phase of the project is focused on implementation of the recommendations of the research report.  In addition to increasing access to accurate and relevant health information, the Women’s Fund GHGH grant will support creation of an ongoing project. 

The goal is to establish a three-year plan for creating and sustaining a girl-led effort to implement recommendations based on the research findings. A full copy of the report is available on the Community Foundation’s website at www.cfmco.org/womensfund.
The grant will also support the formation of three teams of girl leaders, in three Monterey County communities as they create and lead "health days" for other teen girls.

The Women’s Fund also awarded four grants totaling $10,000 that focus on supporting women who are at a point of transition to economic self sufficiency.  The goal is to enhance the ability of community organizations to provide direct financial support to individual women at a time when a modest amount of assistance could make a big difference in getting a job, going to school, or obtaining other resources needed to move toward greater self-reliance.    These needs might include car repair, bus passes, occupational training course fees, books or materials.  Grants were awarded to: Breast Cancer Assistance Group; Community Human Services - Elm House Circle of Women Fund and the Barbara Davies Women’s Health and Wellness Fund; Natividad Medical Foundation and The Village Project.

The mission of the Community Foundation for Monterey County is to improve the quality of life in Monterey County by raising, managing, and distributing charitable funds to qualified organizations and by creating positive connections between donors and their interests.  For more information, please visit www.cfmco.org or call 831.375.9712.